According to The Concord Group Real Estate Advisers:
“Metro Boston’s housing market was affected by the real estate bubble earlier than and not as severely as other metro areas around the country. Economic factors and market trends suggest that Metro Boston will be among the first areas to recover in terms of both increased home sales volume and home price appreciation.”
One positive attribute, according to Concord, is that, “Metro Boston’s housing market was not as overbuilt as other areas of the country during the housing boom. A resale-dominated market, new home sales have accounted for roughly 5% of total sales since 1990 (vs. 17% nationwide). On a percentage basis, Metro Boston’s decline in sales volume from market peak has been similar to that of the U.S. as a whole. However, peak-to-current home price decline has been significantly less severe in Metro Boston than in other regions of the country.”
The big question is employment. Employment has always lagged economic growth, and for common-sense reasons. Among other factors, companies tend to hold off on hiring, even as business rises, until they see that growth is sustainable.
